Hearing God for Ourselves

 “Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you: for he shall not be able to deliver you. Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, The LORD will surely deliver us: this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭36‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Isaiah records, “for he has sent me with these words: ‘Don’t let Hezekiah mislead you, for there is nothing he can do to save you. Don’t be deceived when he tries to persuade you to trust in Yahweh, saying to you, “Yahweh will come to our rescue and our city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.” The king of Assyria, Sennacherib, came to take possession of Jerusalem and send the military commander of his army to intimidate the people of Israel and their king Hezekiah.  The invading army knew the power of God Who protects Israel and that Hezekiah was a godly king.  This is really the desperation of satan, the father of lies, to put fear into people to disregard God, the true and Holy One. Hezekiah, however, listened to the prophet Isaiah and sought God’s help and obeyed God, so that the army of Sennacherib had to leave without invading.  Today, the pressures of culture, tradition, materialism, secularism etc. are such that people succumb to these lies of the devil.  So who do we listen to?  God has already reconciled us to Him through the Cross, given us the power of Jesus’s Name, the power of the Word of God, the power of the Blood Sacrifice, the Resurrection power and the power of the Holy Spirit Who activates this in us.  Let’s hear God for ourselves and overcome everything the adversary brings against us and proclaim the victory of Christ.  Amen!

Our Old Man Was Crucified With Christ

 “knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭6‬:‭6‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Paul had the revelation that, “Could it be any clearer that our former identity is now and forever deprived of its power? For we were co-crucified with him to dismantle the stronghold of sin within us, so that we would not continue to live one moment longer submitted to sin’s power.”  We have come to the realisation that our old son of Adam which was in the body of sin, no longer has dominion over us as it has been put out of business!  To beg God for victory over sin is a refusal to understand that we have already died to sin.  Our joyful task is to believe the good news, rather than  to “crucify ourselves”. Sin is not suppressed by the Cross - it is eliminated.  Upon this “water” God commands us to step out and walk upon it, for we are now in Him.  Let’s keep in mind that we who belong to Jesus Christ have already experienced crucifixion. For everything connected with our self-life was put to death on the Cross and crucified with Messiah. If the Spirit is the source of our life, we must also allow the Spirit to direct every aspect of our lives.  Amen!

The True Church in the Last Days

 “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency of our God.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭35‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Isaiah prophesied, “The wilderness and dry land will be joyously glad! The desert will blossom like a rose and rejoice! Every dry and barren place will burst forth with abundant blossoms, dancing and spinning with delight! Lebanon’s lush splendor covers it, the magnificent beauty of Carmel and Sharon. My people will see the awesome glory of Yahweh, the beautiful grandeur of our God.”  This is a picture of the last-days Church rising up out of the wilderness to shine in all the radiance of its glory.  It is a picture of Eden restored as the Kingdom realm of God brings hope to the weak and struggling.  The “Sacred Way” is the way of life in Christ as we live in His power and virtue.  Blossoming it will blossom as it breaks forth and blooms as God’s people in the last days will spread wings and fly!  Once confined in the wilderness, they will break forth and blossom with beauty and glory as saints of the Most High, with delight and dancing.  Carmel is a mountain range near Israel’s Meditteranean coast and means “fruitful, plentiful orchard or vineyard”.  Sharon is a coastal plain in Israel and means “open, straight, pleasant and prosperous”.  Through our faith, the mighty power of God constantly guards us until our full salvation is ready to be revealed in the last days. Thank You, God, for the last-days Church, the true Church, the Body of Christ. Amen!

Reconciled to God and Living by His Grace

 “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭10‬ ‭KJV‬

Paul’s revelation says, “So if while we were still enemies, God fully reconciled us to Himself through the death of His Son, then something greater than friendship is ours. Now that we are at peace with God, and because we share in His resurrection life, how much more we will be rescued from sin’s dominion!”  Reconciled means exchanged - that is, Christ exchanged our sins for His righteousness and so reconciled us to God.  The reign of death is caused by the guilt of sin.  Jesus had explained to His disciples, “Soon I will leave this world and they will see Me no longer, but you will see Me, because I will live again, and you will come alive too.”  Christ is able to save fully from now throughout eternity, everyone who comes to God through Him, because He lives to pray continually for them.  Let’s ever be reconciled to God and enjoy the bliss of His grace living in us continually.  Amen!

Judgment is Sure for All the Enemies of the Cross

 “And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭34‬:‭4‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Isaiah prophesied, “The heavenly powers will fade away to nothing, and the heavens will be rolled up like a scroll. All their mighty host will wither as leaves fall from a withered vine or fruit from a withering fig tree.”  This host of heaven are the demonic powers which are enemies of God.  These are the highest principalities and authorities operating in rebellion under the heavenly realms. For they are a powerful class of demon-gods and evil spirits that hold this dark world in bondage.  The Lord Jesus defeated these powers on earth through the Cross and made an open shame of them.  Just before He returns, this is what will take place: ‘The sun will be darkened and the moon give no light. The stars will fall from the sky and all the cosmic powers will be shaken.  As John saw in his revelation, “The stars fell from heaven to the earth, as a fig tree shaken by a stormy wind sheds its unripe figs. The sky receded with a snap—as a scroll rolls itself up. And every mountain and island was moved from its place. Then the kings of the earth and its great princes and generals, the rich and powerful, and everyone, whether they were slave or free, ran for cover and hid in the caves and among the mountain boulders. They called out to the mountains and the boulders, saying, “Fall on us at once! Hide us quickly from the glorious face of the One seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”  Judgment is sure for all the enemies of the Cross.  This is why we are to preach the Gospel of power as never before.  Amen!

Righteous by Faith through the Blood of Christ

 7 “saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, And whose sins are covered. 8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin. 24 but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25 who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭4‬:‭7‬-‭8‬, ‭24‬-‭25‬ ‭KJV‬

Paul’s revelation was, “Here’s what David says: What happy fulfillment is ahead for those whose rebellion has been forgiven and whose sins are covered by blood. What happy progress comes to them when they hear the Lord speak over them, “I will never hold your sins against you!” but also over us. For when we believe and embrace the one who brought our Lord Jesus back to life, perfect righteousness will be credited to our account as well. Jesus was handed over to be crucified for the forgiveness of our sins and was raised back to life to prove that he had made us right with God!”  David wrote this psalm when sin was covered by a blood sacrifice - today our sins are no longer covered but removed forever.  God has taken an inventory of the virtue of Christ, and through our faith in Him, His perfect righteousness is deposited in our account.  It is settled: we are declared righteous by faith.  The Blood of the Cross is the means of our justification and the resurrection is the proof that God now sees believers as righteous in His eyes.  That is our blessedness, our bliss, our joy unspeakable and full of glory.  May we walk in this every day of our life.  Amen!

We See the King of Glory

 “he shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure. Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭33‬:‭16‬-‭17‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Isaiah prophesied, “they will live safely on the heights and make their safe place the mountain strongholds, with bread in steady supply and water assured.” In this high place, your eyes will see the King in His stunning beauty and gaze upon His broad domain.”  This refers to those who are enthroned with Christ and seated with Him in the heavenly realm. John the beloved disciple was told by Jesus that “And to the one who conquers I will give the privilege of sitting with Me on My throne, just as I conquered and sat down with My Father on His throne.”  Paul was given this revelation for the Church, “He raised us up with Christ the Exalted One, and we ascended with Him into the glorious perfection and authority of the heavenly realm, for we are now co-seated as one with Christ!”  We have received a supernatural supply of revelation-bread and living water and our eyes are fixed on our beautiful King, not on ourselves or our ministries.  We see the King of Glory, the King of kings.  No earthly king is in view here!  Everything we could ever need for life and godliness has already been deposited in us by God’s divine power. For all this was lavished upon us through the rich experience of knowing Him Who has called us by name and invited us to come to Him through a glorious manifestation of His goodness. As a result of this, Christ has given us magnificent promises that are beyond all price, so that through the power of these tremendous promises we can experience partnership with the divine nature, by which we have escaped the corrupt desires that are of the world.  Amen!

Justified Freely Through Faith in Christ’s Blood

 “being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭3‬:‭24‬-‭26‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Paul’s revelation was, “Yet through His  powerful declaration of acquittal, God freely gives away His righteousness. His gift of love and favor now cascades over us, all because Jesus, the Anointed One, has liberated us from the guilt, punishment, and power of sin! Jesus’ God-given destiny was to be the sacrifice to take away sins, and now He is our mercy seat because of His death on the Cross. We come to Him for mercy, for God has made a provision for us to be forgiven by faith in the sacred Blood of Jesus. This is the perfect demonstration of God’s justice, because until now, He had been so patient—holding back His justice out of His tolerance for us. So He covered over the sins of those who lived prior to Jesus’ sacrifice. And when the season of tolerance came to an end, there was only one possible way for God to give away His righteousness and still be true to both His justice and His mercy—to offer up His Own Son. So now, because we stand on the faithfulness of Jesus, God declares us righteous in His eyes!”  Such stupendous legacy that God ordained in advance an atonement by faith in Jesus’s Blood for everyone who believes.  God gave mercy and by faith in Christ’s Blood we received God’s righteousness.  Hallelujah!

Grace and Peace to Us in Christ

 “And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever. And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places;”

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭32‬:‭17‬-‭18‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Isaiah prophesied, “The work of righteousness is peace, and the result of righteousness is quietness and confidence forever. My people will live free from worry in secure homes and quiet resting places.”  This peace that comes is not from the works of man but from the righteousness that Christ exchanged for us through the Cross.  Jesus said, “How joyful you are when you make peace! For then you will be recognized as a true child of God.”  Jesus is the quiet resting place for every lover of God.  Christ is our true peace and Paul understood that for he released God’s peace to everyone he wrote his epistles to - grace and peace from God our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ our Lord, our Saviour.  May we know our identity in Christ and release God’s peace to everyone and every situation.  Amen!

By Faith We Please God in Obeying Him

 “to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭2‬:‭7‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Paul’s revelation to the Church, “For those living in constant goodness and doing what pleases Him, seeking an unfading glory and honor and imperishable virtue, will experience eternal life.”  Doing what pleases God comes from faith.  We must first believe in Jesus, the Anointed One.  Then our life and works will bring honour to Him.  When we do what pleases God, we can expect unfading glory, true honor, and a continual peace to us.  When the disciples asked Jesus, “So what should we do if we want to do God’s work?” Jesus answered, “The work you can do for God starts with believing in the One He has sent.”  Without faith living within us it would be impossible to please God. For we come to God in faith knowing that He is real and that He rewards the faith of those who passionately seek Him.  Let’s be those who believe and walk in the faith of our risen Lord Jesus Christ and preach Christ.  Amen!